And One More Thing
by Oomaki-chan
Summary: Yukine is young and new to the concept of "love". But when looking into what crushes really are, feelings for a certain god bubble up.


The one thing that confused Yukine more than death was love. It wasn't that he didn't understand the concept, even at his age he knew the basics. Dating and kissing and stuff like that. Sometimes, when he wasn't needed for any jobs, he would walk into a near-by middle school, and he would often times hear the students talking about their crushes. They all seemed to have one.

As the young shinki worked on problems from an old math textbook, he thought about the idea of having a crush. To his knowledge, he'd never had one before. It was supposed to some girl he liked, right? Some girl who was special to him? He thought about it more. He didn't know too many people, even fewer girls. Narrowing it down shouldn't be hard.

His train of thought distracted him from the work he had been doing, and soon Yukine found himself laying on his back on the floor. He tried to think of any girl he might like, but no one stood out in his mind more than anyone else. As he thought about crushes, he thought about what he would do if he had one. The next step would be asking the person out, right? Go on dates... Yukine's face grew red at that thought. The shinki couldn't even remember being all that close with anyone other than that ridiculous god of his.

That was a scary thought in its own. That goofy nut of a "boss" that Yato is; introducing that to someone he liked would cause him to die all over again just from the embarrassment. "That guy's a total piece of work." Yukine muttered to himself. Sure, the minor god had his moments, and sometimes he could be pretty cool...-ish, but only in an odd, strange, incomprehensible way.

Yukine's attention was stolen away from his analysis of Yato when a familiar face entered the room.

"Hello." Hiyori smiled at the blonde boy who still lay on the floor. "What are you up to?"

The boy in question shrugged before pushing himself back up into a seated position. "Nothing much. Just thinking." He watched as Hiyori placed her bag down and sat down nearby.

"Thinking about what?"

Yukine didn't respond immediately. It was a sensitive subject for most people after all. Shouldn't he be cautious about it too? But then again, Hiyori was the only one he could ever talk about this with. "Hey Hiyori, do... do you have a crush on anyone?"

The school girl's eyes went wide briefly, as if taken aback by the question. "Um. Not at the moment. No." She studied the younger boy's expression. "Why?"

"Just wondering." Yukine replied all too quickly. He looked up at Hiyori to find that he was being stared at. "Er... Well, I... I was just wondering how to know if you have a crush on someone or not. I've always heard people talking about it, so I'm just a bit curious. That's all."

Hiyori laughed. "It that all?" She looked at the semi-blushing face of the boy. "Well, I mean, if you're curious I can tell you. But you have to actually listen." Yukine nodded his head at the girl and turned to face her directly, his legs crossed in front of him. "Alright then. The first thing about crushes is that you're always happy to see them, and you want to see them a lot."

Yukine thought about it. He didn't see too many people too often, but he felt like Yato was the closest fit to that description. 'Happy' to see that god was a stretch, but he didn't mind his company. As odd as it was, Yato made more sense to him than anyone else.

"Also," Hiyori started again. "You like them for who they are. N matter what they look like, you still like them."

Yato's face appeared in Yukine's head once more. It confused the boy. As strange as Ytao was, he could be pretty cool. And everyday was interesting because of him. Plus, despite that old tracks unit and bandana... thing, he didn't look kind of cool. _'Wait. Why the hell am I thinking he's cool and looks good?!'_ Yukine thought to himself. He mentally tried to slap the thought out of his head.

"So do you have someone in mind?" Hiyori's question brought the blonde's attention back to reality.

"No." He said. "No girls come to mind."

"What are you guys talking about?!" Suddenly Yato appeared in the room, his cellphone held up to his ear.

"Yukine was just asking abou-"

"Nothing." Yukine jumped in before Hiyori could finish. "Nothing important."

"Good." The minor god grinned. "'Cause we've got a job. Let's go!" Yato suddenly reached out and grabbed the shinki by the arm. Yukine felt his face get a bit warm, and he opened his mouth to protest, but before he could say anything, Yato teleported them to their destination.

The job itself wasn't difficult, or at least not with Yato's apparent OCD when it comes to cleaning. Yukine on the other hand wasn't the best at it, especially not cleaning an entire house.e request had something to do with cleaning up before some house party, but all Yukine knew was that he was expected to make the living room all neat and tidy, for only five yen? Granted, Yukina now knew better than to ask for more, but it still was annoying that all of his hard work was barely rewarded. Although the shinki didn't do nearly as much of the work as that crazy god he followed around. Yato was so much of a clean freak when it came to jobs he did that Yukine wondered why he was so ok with living under such gross conditions.

"You really like cleaning, don't you?" Yukine muttered as he watched the older guy carefully scrubbing the kitchen sink.

"Hmm? What was that?" Yato looked towards the blonde, smiling with a sponge in his hand.

Yukine looked at the smiled. As big as it normally was, it looked especially... Sparkly? Or maybe it was just the lighting it something? But for whatever reason, Yukine couldn't figure out why the minor god looked, well, handsome. "Did you do something different? With your hair or clothes or something?"

"I got the chance to shower this morning." The boy shrugged as he turned back to his cleaning.

"Hm..." That was probably it. He just looked better than normal because he was cleaned up. After all, it wasn't everyday that the guy's choppy black hair looked so soft, or his face smooth and without grease marks or scratches, that would occasionally make that god look a bit adorable, dreamy even... Yukine shook his head violently._ 'No. No, no, no, no, no! Those thoughts are not ok!'_

"Hey Yukine." Yato called to the blonde. He had finished his "little" cleaning frenzy and was packing up everything he'd used. "You ok?"

Yukine raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know." The black haired male shrugged. He picked up the coin that was his payment, flipped it in the air once, then dropped it into his treasured glass bottle. "Your face is a bit red and you look out of it. You sick or something?"

The fourteen year old grew extremely flustered for a moment, but managed to calm down after one breath, not that he really understood why he was in the first place. "I'm dead, remember? I can't get sick."

"Better sad than sorry." Yato jumped the boy and slung and arm around his shoulders. "I can't let my best shinki get sick or weak or something."

"I'm your only shinki." Yukine muttered. He tried to keep himself from blushing, or push Yato off for that matter. "If we're done then can we just get going?"

"Sure thing." Yato grinned and began leading the both of them out of the house. They stopped to say a quick 'good-bye' to the lady who had hired them, then left to go who knows where.

They ended up walking aorund the city, completely aimlessly. Yato was a big fan of window shopping, so Yukine watched as the minor god fawned over clothes, furniture, and the like, wishing that he could afford such items, as well as a place to put them. On occasion the god would ask Yukine what he thought about certain items, mainly clothes. When he would look at them, the blonde tried picturing Yato wearing them in his head. He had a feeling that just about anything would look good on the minor god, especially more form-fitting clothes. Truth be told, Yukine was certain that Yato would look pretty good in any kind of clothing. After all, he was able to make that ratty, old track suit look pretty decent, good even.

"Maybe we should try dressing-up sometime." Yato suggested as he looked at the window of a formal-wear store.

"It'd be nice if we could afford it." Yukine muttered, earning a chuckle in responce.

"One day I'll get you something nice." Yato looked his shinki dead in the eye, with an almost sincere smile on his face.

Yukine's eyes grew wide the moment he saw the expression on the black-haired boy's face. He stood still, with Yato standing across from him, and for a moment the work seemed to rush by without them. When the blonde realized he was starring he ducked his head down and looked at his feet as he tapped them awkwardly against the sidewalk.

"H-hey Yato..." Yukine spoke up. He noticed the ping of interest in his weilder's expression before he decided to continue. "Do you... Do you know a lot about c-c-crushes?"

The blonde couldn't believe that he had broughten it up. He cursed at himself for a moment.

"Um, I understand the concept?" Yato's voice was clearly questioning, obviously curious as to what the reason for the question was.

"Then," Yukine gulped down his nerves and looked up, coming eye to eye with royal blue. "Then, do you know if it's possibles to have a crush on a guy?"

Yato's eyes immediately went wide, realization at what exactly the boy before him was asking struck like a slap to the face. He studied the blonde's face for a moment, an action born out of complete loss for words, and saw the near red hue that spread across Yukine's cheecks. Then he thought about where the two of them were. The middle of a crowded sidewalk was no place to discuss a sensitive topic like this one. "Come with me." Yato said, reaching out and grabbing Yukine's hand before teleporting the both of them away. The two then appeared I. A forest-like area. In the light of the day buildings could be seen a ways past the branches, but here were no clear landmarks.

"So, um..." Yato began. He scratched the back of his head. "If you're talking about being gay, then yeah. Guys are able to, uh, 'have a crush' on other guys."

The topic seemed a bit uncomfortable from Yukine's point of view. But now that they were on it, it looked like there was no going back. "And it's normal, right?"

"It is now." Yato tried to put on a serious face, something he wasn,t to used to having in the company of his shinki. On the inside, however, he was having a little argument about just how much he should tell Yukine. "Look, Yukine, if you think you're gay then that's fine."

"Wh-wha-" The teen could feel his face get hot the second Yato had said that. _'Gay? I'm-'_ Then he thought about it. He thought about what Hiyori had told him earlier that day. Then about what he knew about crushed and liking someone. Then immediately about Yato. "O-ok..."

It grew silent right away, and uncomfortably so. Neither boy knew how to move on. Yukine could have sworn that Yato kept looking at him, starring even, and it peaked an interest into his head. Unable to control his own words anymore, he opened his mouth and said something he knew he shouldn't have. "So, about crushes again... D-do you have a crush on anyone right now?"

Yato shuttered at the question and felt his face get a bit warm. He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked away from the blonde. "I don't know if I'd call it a crush."

"Oh..." Yukine looked down at his feet. It was stupid of his to bring it up in the first place. He knew that before he even opened his mouth. But he couldn't help the curiosity that rushed through him.

"I'm, uh, guessing you have someone though?" The minor god tried his best not to make the situation more awkward than it already was. Even he knew he was failing miserably. But the little pinch in his gut only further convinced him that his hunch was correct. Now everything that escaped his lips was purely to verify it.

"Yeah. Probably." The blonde in question nodded.

"Who?" The moment the word left his mount Yato wanted to curse himself for saying it. What made it even worse was the absolute silence that came as a responce. Sri looked over to his shinki, who had turned from pale as a ghost to bright red. After mere moments, each feeling like and jour, he could hear Yukine murmuring something, but it was so inaudiable that he couldn't make out a single word.

"Um, Yukine?" Yato tried to be as careful as possible at this point, not wanting to upset his shinki.

"I said..." Yukine piped up, only to let his course do soft again. He managed to raise his head and look Yato in the eyes for a split second, but quickly advert end them as though looking directly at him would spark a fire. "I-I, I-I-I l-l-l-like... I like you."

Both boys froze where they were. Neither threatened to move even an inch. Yukine's words, his confession, rang out through the air, and met Yato'sears with a contagious blush and pounding heart. It was as through one wrong move could cause both of them to break, and fall, and lose their ability to discuss this matter forever. Both Yukine and Yato knew this. If this matter didn't get settled now, then it would remain impossible to talk about and will turn into a taboo topic. The real problem was now addressing it properly.

"Yukine I-"

"Haha. Sorry Yato." Yukine chuckled a bit._ 'What am I doing?'_ "That was, uh, that was a pretty bad joke."_ 'No. Stop it.'_ He could feel his voice catching in his throat. "So, uh, I-I'll just, um..." Yukine looked as though he were about to run or cry, or both. He could feel what felt like tears welling up in his eyes, and did his best to hold them back. _'I'm so stupid.'_

Without thinking, and to both of their surprise, Yato lunged forward and grabbed onto Yukine's hand, halting the blonde's retreat. "Don't run. You and I both know that once you run..."

The younger boy looked up at Yato with sad, pleading eyes, and a powdered blush.

"Let me actually respond before you run off." Yato smiled. His reply from the younger was a light nod of the head, followed by turning back so that the two were once again face-to-face. "Right. Now then," the god scratched the back of his head with his free hand, one still holding Yukine's. "Gosh I'm bad at this." He cursed himself. Yato knew exactly what he wanted to say, what he needed to say, but he was having trouble finding the correct words. Of course that happened to him once it actually mattered. Of course. The minor god wasn't the best with words. Anyone knew that. The minor god took a deep breath, then finally began saying what he had wanted to the moment this conversation began. "Yukine. You are a strong, smart guy, and I never could have asked for a better shinki. But, maybe I think of you too much as a shinki, and less as a person."

Two pairs of eyes met, confusion crossing over from Yukine's into Yato's. The blonde boy didnt quite know what was going on anymore. What was Yato trying to say? How was he supposed to react? A feeling of excitement mingled with disappointment because of the god's reaction to his confession. Even still, Yukine waited patiently, enjoying the feeling of his master's hand wrapped around his own. No matter what Yato said, no matter what the reply, Yukine was happy to at least get that much.

"So, um," Yato continued. "I think what I'm trying to say here is that I... I like you too."

Yukine's eyes widened and he almost wished that someone would pinch him and wake him and wake him up. "You're not lying to me, are you?" He asked, looking up with a world of worry in his eyes.

"I wouldn't lie about like that." Yato cracked a bit of a smile, about almost mockingly, yet lovingly, raised his free hand and ruffled through the golden-blonde locks ontop of Yukine's head. "It might not be quite as strong, but it's deffinetly a there. And I can't ignore it, or lie about it. Promise."

The shinki blushed immediately at the contact, of course Yato's words weren't helping either. But even so, there was a large smile across his lips. This was an outcome he definitely wasn't expecting.

What a day. What a day.


End file.
